a journal of discovery, conviction, and walking with the poor and orphaned of Rwanda

Friday, July 23, 2010

Good, Healthy Livin'

One of my favorite blog posts by a Bridge2Rwanda teammate was actually not "a" post, but rather a 10-part series written by Kelly Simpson on her "Top Ten Differences Between US and Rwanda." She took care to point out her philosophy that "just because something is different does not necessarily mean it is bad or wrong. Sometimes things are just different." kellyuosdwis.blogspot.com (Make sense of Kelly's very clever e-mail and blogspot address and prove yourself much brighter than I,... but I was not given this challenge or hint.)

Installment No. 4 was entitled "Bodily Figure", and it read and pictured, as follows:

Let’s face it. Americans are fat. Potentially because of things like the new KFC Double Down that I read about on the Internet. And because they spend half their lives sitting in a car to drive somewhere to sit some more. There’s just no time to exercise, and food that makes you fat just tastes so good.

Fat Rwandans are few and far between. It has something to do with the amount of exercise they get just by living their lives. And that food merely provides sustenance; eating is not a cure for boredom or stress.

(Side note: The amount of money Americans spend on weight loss programs every year could feed all of the hungry people in the world three times over.)

The most effective workout I’ve witnessed so far in my life is fishing for a living on a lake in Africa. Rwandan fishermen are ripped, jacked, and swole. Forget CrossFit. Forget P90X. Come haul in some fishing nets with this guy, and you’ll be looking good in no time, that is, if you can handle the workout. Rwandans are tough!

In an effort to be more Rwandan and less American in my bodily figure, I opt to go for a run most mornings. It blows the minds of the Rwandan people. Our guard thinks I’m crazy as he opens the gate for me early every morning. Why would you tack on additional exercise to your daily routine, when supposedly the daily routine is filled with exercise? But alas, my daily routine lacks movement, so I tack it on like the American that I am.

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That's it for Kelly,... now Tom is back with you:

I was inspired and persuaded. I live in Rwanda, so why can't I adopt the good, clean life of a Rwandan and enjoy the same results. So with this resolution and new-found discipline in mind, I put the Rwandan lifestyle and myself to the test, with quite remarkable results.

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Not About Me

I am reluctant to do the Bio thing. Nothing "about me" should be the focus here, except as this open journal may resonate with (or provoke) your own thoughts. But I offer this much: After 30 years as an attorney, I am now a typical Halftimer who is determined to move beyond success to significance. Inspired and convicted by three sons (Tommy, Nathan & Wesley) who live passionate and adventurous lives, I am now privileged to participate in the exciting social changes and development occurring in Rwanda and elsewhere in Africa, hoping to empower the desperately poor. But I must be very clear on this: I am just your average coward. Suffering and sacrifice are very foreign concepts to me. However, I now believe that life comfortably ensconced in a safe cocoon misses out on too much of what might be learned, experienced, and shared with others in the Majority World, many of whom are crying out in desperate need, and some of whom beam with smiles and contentment such as I have seldom seen. I want to know them and their lives.